Adjustable guard and depth gauge for a power operated disc saw



April 1956 M. A. WlETlNG 2,741,282

ADJUSTABLE GUARD AND DEPTH GAUGE FOR A POWER OPERATED DISC SAW Filed Sept. 2, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet l Jaye??? April 10, 1956 M. A. WlETlNG 2,741,282

ADJUSTABLE GUARD AND DEPTH GAUGE FOR A POWER OPERATED DISC W1 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 2, 1954 United States Patent ADJUSTABLE GUARD AND DEPTH GAUGE FOR A PGWER OPERATED DISC SAW Merlin A. Wieting, Hilbert, Wis.

Application September 2, 1954, Serial No. 453,884

8 Claims. (Cl. 144-136) This invention is an improved type of casing tool and more specifically relates to a manually operated tool adapted for use in laying various types of hard surfaced covers and the like, such as floors and walls.

A primary object of my invention is a casing tool adapted to form a slot or channel by cutting type action along a wall molding, window sill or the like, so that a surface covering of any suitable type can be fitted in the slot or channel as it is laid.

Another object of my invention is a casing tool of the above type which can be adjusted so that the depth of the slot or channel that is cut can be regulated.

Another object of my invention is a tool of the above type which is manually operable and formed as an attachment for a conventional hand drill or the like.

Another object of my invention is a casing tool of the above type which is adapted to cut a clean, neat slot of a predetermined depth and not to score or mar the adjacent surface in any way.

Another object of my invention is a casig tool of the above type which is adapted to cut a slot or channel of a determinable height as well as a determinable depth.

Other objects will appear from time to time in the ensuing specification and drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side view, partly in section, showing my casing tool in combination with a hand drill in position against a conventional floor molding;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the casing tool shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken along line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is an end view of the casing tool taken from the opposite end of that in Figure 2; and

Figure 6 is a sectional view similar to Figure 5 but showing two blades instead of one mounted on the casing tool.

In Figure l the casing tool is indicated generally at 10 and has a conventional hand drill 12 fitted into its rear end to drive it.

The casing tool is composed primarily of a main support or body member 14 having a generally open bore into which a bushing 16 is fitted with a spindle 18 rotatably mounted in the bushing. The spindle has an enlarged socketed end 26. The bushing 16 is held in place by a conventional set screw 22 or the like. The spindle is shouldered as at 24 at the other end forming a key extension 26 which is somewhat rectangular in cross section as shown in Figure 5. The key extension and a part of the spindle are tapped and threaded at 28 so that a circular saw blade 30, when mounted on the key extension, can be held firmly in position by a conventional screw 32 or the like. The threaded opening 28 for the screw and the rectangular opening in the center of the blade are countersunk so that the head of the screw will not project beyond the exposed surface of the circular blade as shown in Figure 4. The blade 30 is spaced from the shoulder 24 on the spindle by a suitable washer 34, or the like.

An adjustable guard, indicated generally at 36 in Figure 2, is mounted on the body member so as to enclose the saw in the manner as shown in the drawing. This guard is in the form of two segment plates or elements 38 and 40, the plate 49 being around the bushing 16 against the end of the body member and is held in position by one or more screws 42 as shown in Figure 4. The other plate member 38 bears against a shoulder 44 formed in the bushing and is held in position by a locking collar 46 fitted over the end of the bushing and held in place by one or more suitable set screws 48 or the like.

Thus, the two guard plates fit against each other and it should be noted that the peripheral edge of each of the plates is provided with a flange which extends slightly beyond the plane of the saw blade in an axial direction as shown in Figure 4. The diameter of one plate is slightly greater than the diameter of the other so that they will fit inside of each other. For example, the fixed plate 4%) has a flanged edge 50 which, in a radial direction, extends slightly beyond a similar flange 52 formed on the outer extremity of the movable plate 38. The plates extend approximately the same distance axially as shown in Figure 4, this distance being just slightly beyond the blade.

While the plate 40 is fixed by screws 42 or the like to the main support member, the plate 38 can be rotated and it is secured in one of a number of positions by a detent mechanism shown in detail at 54 in Figure 2. This detent includes a suitable leaf spring 56 secured at one end by a rivet 58 or the like with a plug 61) mounted on it which projects through an opening 62 in the fixed plate into one of a plurality of openings 64 in the movable plate. Thus the plug 69 locks the plates with relation to each other. The leaf spring extends beyond the circumference of the guard as at 66, as shown in Figure 2 so that it can be actuated easily by the operator as shown in Figure 3. A suitable handle structure 68 can be provided on the main body member so that it can be easily manipulated by hand.

The hand drill 12 can have a suitably formed extension 70 held by its chuck 72 in a suitable manner and inserted in the socket 29 to rotate the spindle and saw blade. It should be understood, of course, that an integral power piece of any suitable type could be permanently built in or on the casing tool; however, I have found it more practical to construct the casing tool as a separate attachment usable with the power tool such as in Figure l.

The use, operation and function of my invention are as follows:

In laying any type of surface covering, such as a floor or wall covering, it is desirable that the molding at right angles to it be notched, grooved or channeled so that the covering can be fitted into the groove and, in effect, be slipped under the molding. This is an old procedure and is far superior to cutting off the covering or tiling and matching it up to the walls because the fit acquired by the latter procedure is highly inaccurate and involves strictly a trial and error procedure. Grooving or cutting the molding has been done in the past by conventional old fashion hand saws which is unsuccessful because it scars or grooves the floor surface as well as the molding and provides an irregular notch or groove.

My invention is a casing tool designed to perform this grooving or slotting operation without marring any of the surfaces while performing its function in a rapid, eflicient and accurate manner.

The tool is used as shown in Figure l. I have depicted a wall W with a conventional molding M on it joining a suitable floor F. Thetool is turned vertically by the user as shown in Figure 1, and moved in against the molding so that the exposed portion of the saw blade will cut a' notch or channel at. the bottom of the molding. After he has initially cut into the molding, the user begins his lateral movement and slots the molding any desired distance. It will be understood, of course, that this same procedure can be carried out along wall surfaces, underneath Window sills and the lil e; The surface covering can then be slipped intothis notch or channel in the molding, and a clean, neat appearance will be acquired. The operator need merely have one hand on the power tool 12 and the other on the handle of the casing tool.

To adjust the depth of the slot to be cut in the molding, the operator need merely rotate the plate 3% with respect tothe plate 49' after slipping the detent spring 56 up and letting it pop back into any one of the holes 64.

I have shown only-one position of adjustment in Figure 2 and it should be understood that the opening between the edges of the two plates can be varied so that the depths of the slot can be changed. For example, if the plate 38 is rotated clockwise in Figure 2 to a new position,

more of the blade will be covered and the ends of the guard will engage the molding as shown in Figure l and prevent the saw blade from penetrating as far into the molding. On the other hand, if the plate 38 is rotated counterclockwise to a new position in Figure 2, the ends of the plates'will be farther apart and more of the saw blade Will be exposed. Thus the plates will not contact the molding until after the saw blade has penetrated farther into it and thus a deeper channel will be cut.

In Figure 6, I have shown two blades mounted on the end of the spindle, the inner blade replacing the washer 34 in Figure 4, and by using one or more circular saw blades, the height or width of the slot or groove can be changed.

It should be understood that this tool can be used to lay any type of tiling, hard surfaced floor coverings, of all types, and the like. It can be used around window sills, floor moldings or any type of molding, for that matter, which is to be cut, slotted, or grooved and removed so that the floor covering or surface covering can be slipped into the channel. It is obvious that the saw blades 30 are interchangeable and the unit can equally well be used with carpeting, if desired.

The saw blade is, in a sense, encased by the guard to a predetermining extent so that a set amount of the first blade is exposed. The guard has a double function; first, it regulates the depth of the cut or slot in the molding, and secondly, it prevents the rotating blade from scarring the surface against which it is laid, such as the floor F in Figure 1. It is important that the guard extend a slight distance beyond the plane of the saw blade as shown in Figure 4 so that the side of the blade will not mar the floor or wall. it is, of course, obvious that suitable graduations could be placedalong the holes 64 to show the depth of cut that would be acquired for each position of adjustment. Additionally, the movable plate 38 can be rotated clockwise until the guard is completely closed to protect the blade while it is not in use.

While I have shown and described the preferred form and one modification of my invention, it should be understood that numerous modifications, changes, substitutions, and alterations can be made. For example, the particular handle structure is unimportant although, of course, one is very desirable. Any number and style of saw blades can be used and furthermore the tool can have its own power source mounted integrally on it, although this would make it a great deal more cumbersome. The

socket 20 could be formed as a projecting male member, although, of course, this is optional. Additionally, the collar 46 could be formed integrally with the bushing in one piece. The handle structure 68 could also have any suitable brace or frame to facilitate the assembly of the device with the power tool. The connection between the blade and the spindle is, of course, optional, and any suitable, non-rotatable mounting can be used. I, therefore, Wish that my invention be unrestricted except as by the-appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a casing tool, a main support member, a spindle rotatably mounted therein projecting from one end, a rotary saw element mounted on the end of the spindle, and a guard for the saw element mounted on the end of the main support element, said guard overlying the peripheral edge of the saw element but being interrupted and adjustable so as to expose dilferent arcuate lengths of the saw elements peripheral edge, said guard being generally open on the side opposite the main support member.

2. The structure of claim 1 in which the guard extends slightly beyond the plane of the saw element in an axial direction.

3. In a casing tool, a main support member, a spindle rotatably mounted therein projecting from one end, a rotary saw element on the end of the spindle, and a guard for the saw element mounted on the end of the main support member, said guard being interrupted and adjustable so as to expose different arcuate lengths of the saw elements peripheral edge, the guard including two arcuate elements, one being fixedly mounted and the other being rotatably mounted on the main support member, and means for fixing the rotatable guard element in a plurality of positions so as to vary the arcuate distance between the ends of the guard elements.

4. The structure of claim 3 in which each of the guard elements extends at least around the rotary saw element. a

5. The structure of claim 4 in which the spindle is provided with a socket at its other end for the reception of a power means.

6. The structure of claim 5 characterized by and including a handle on the main support member.

7. In a casing tool, a main support member with a generally open bore, a spindle rotatably mounted in the bore, a circular saw element fixedly mounted on' one end of the spindle for rotation therewith, and a guard structure on the main support member adjustably surrounding the peripheral edge of the saw element, said guard structure including two arcuate plates, one pivotally and the other fixedly mounted on the main support member, next to each other, each of the plates having a flanged edge extending axially beyond the plane of the saw element, the diameter of one plate "being slightly greater than the diameter of the other so that one will fit in the other, and means for releasably fixing the pivotal plate in a selected one of a plurality of positions.

8. The structure of claim 7 characterized by and including means for rotating the spindle.

References Cited-in the file of this patent UNITED. STATES PATENTS Keeling Sept. 16, 1952 m Lyavnaj mum-Lu, 

